MORE POWER CUTS

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 February 1947, Page 7

MORE POWER CUTS

Britain Returns To Black-Out EVERY HOME NOW AFFECTED (Recd. 10.45 a.m.) LONDON, February 12. The Ministry of Fuel announced that the domestic electricity restrictions would be extended to the rest of England, including Scotland, from to-morrow. Drastic cuts in street lighting, amounting almost to black-out conditions, would also be imposed. Traffic lights would be excepted. The Ministry warned that the gas position is getting serious and asked the public not to light gasfires and water heaters if forms of solid fuel were available. “The people,” the Ministry said, “must get down to really serious economy.”

The Ministry added that 24,500 tons of coal were saved yesterday, compared with 22,550 the day before, but the overall position is still critical. Domestic consumers co-operated more to-day. For all the generating stations under the control of the Central Electricity Board, last weeks figures showed that 700,000 tons of coal were consumed and 550,000 delivered. The Prime Minister, Mr. Attlee, presided at a special Cabinet meeting at which the new fuel crisis decisions were taken,- affecting everybody in the United Kingdom. Seventeen coal trains carrying 6500 tons are on their way to London, representing one-fifth of London’s daily consumption under the present restrictions. A total of 38 colliers have now left north-eastern ports for London, carrying 70,000 tons of coal. Forty-three are ready to sail later today. Half a million tons of coal are held up in the frost-paralysed railway marshalling yards in the north. Troops are standing by to clear the snow-blocked lines. The War Office has already decided that flame-throwers are not effective for the job, but is urgently considering the use of bulldozers and other military equipment. Army convoys are reinforcing road transport, much of which is still snowed up in many parts of the country. Villagers Await Supplies. Eleven Staffordshire villages in storm-racked northern Britain are; anxiously awaiting the parachuting of the first food supplies for ten days. | Four-engined bombers are standing ; by to drop 20,000 lbs of bread, fats, 1 cheese and sugar. | An attempt was made to-day to, drop supplies to two villages in south- 1 west Northumberland. At the village of Longnore people stood by with; buckets of soot to make a black cross

on the snow as a guide to the planes. One canister of food was dropped here, but the weather was too bad to complete the programme. The planes will try again to-morrow. Some of the villagers have been living on scraps since the week-end, the only food in the village store being a few jars of jam. • The inhabitants of the East Norfolk coastal village of Horsey are trying to clear the road of snowdrifts with a tractor. The villagers ' have been without coal for three I weeks. They obtained bread when • men crossed the fields to the neigh- ! bouring village of Waxham. People jof several isolated Staffordshire villages, who have been existing on .milk and potatoes, forced their way ! to Leek and took back provisions on ! sledges. The 450 inhabitants of Warslow are also existing on milk j and potatoes. 1 There was further clouding of Londoners’ outlook when scores of tobbaconists were notified that their cigarette quotas would be cut down owing to stortages caused by power cuts. The stocks of candles, which increased in price yesterday, are also running low. The temperatures in all parts of Britain, except the south-west, were .again below freezing point to-day. Severe Cold in Europe. In Berlin the Allied officialst announced drastic electricity cuts for ' large areas of Berlin. The power in ' the British, American and French | sectors will be cut off from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., except for short meal-time I periods. I Public health officials in Berlin 1 said that 94 people have died of cold ’ since January 9. Austria’s dwindling coal stocks jhave forced a complete stoppage of steel production.